As our resident ‘pensions guru’ I took over Thomsons’ Twitter channel last week to answer the questions on the hot topic of financial wellness. Those participating could follow along using our thread #AskNeil. Many of our followers sent us in some very interesting and thought-provoking questions – I’ve chosen a selection to share in this blog post.

How can financial wellness be defined? It is all about optimizing your own position and being in control of your finances. Managing day-to-day, month-to-month, and being financially resilient and protected will allow you to plan for the long-term and make educated, informed decisions.

Could you provide three top tips to support your employees with their finances? Employers need to start by defining what they are trying to achieve with their people strategy. They are then able to adopt a strategy-first approach and not just opt for the product ‘remedy’ which looks the ‘shiniest’. Finally, always remember that member journey and the experience is the key so never neglect employee communications and engagement!

Do pensions fit into financial wellness? They’re absolutely integral and form a key main pillar of the financial wellness strategies we help clients design. And, don’t forget about other long-term savings options too! There can be a perception that financial wellness is only for millennials because the phrase is trending at the moment, however the concept of looking after your financial health is nothing new and is universally applicable – financial stress is felt across demographics.

What do you think the challenges are with getting employees to really engage with financial wellbeing benefits? Employers must make the offering relevant and also personalized to each employee’s situation because everyone will need or use the benefits for different reasons. Make sure that the financial wellness benefits are communicated to your employees in a simple and uncomplicated way to make it easier for them to understand and then engage.

How can I measure my ROI of financial wellness? Employers should always take before and after primary research to measure employee sentiment; this is the acid test which can sit alongside more quantitative data sources such as reporting on benefit uptake and engagement levels for your benefits portal.

Does financial wellness is impact mental health? Without a doubt, financial wellness has a direct impact on overall wellness! There’s a wealth of empirical evidence which proves the link – this is just one example.

To see more questions from the Q&A check out the #AskNeil thread and if you are interested in finding out more about financial wellness you can see our latest research here and if you have any more questions do not hesitate to contact us.

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